Boiler up!
That’s the rally cry that’s been growing louder as the Purdue Boilermakers men’s basketball team gets set to take the court Saturday in Arizona. It will be the West Lafayette school’s first Final Four appearance in more than 40 years.
The last time Purdue went to the NCAA Final Four, Jimmy Carter was president and Lee Rose coached the Boilers. In that time, Indiana University’s men’s teams have made four Final Four appearances. Butler University’s teams have been twice.
For Purdue, whose hoops team in recent years has been highly ranked but upset and out of the tournament early, promising seasons have ended in frustration. Going into this year’s tournament, doubters had recent history on their side.
How gratifying it must be for this Boilermakers team, led by the nation’s leading scorer and March Madness’ giantest player, 7-foot-4 senior Zach Edey, to be playing lights-out ball to earn their shot. How rewarding it must be for Purdue’s loyal fans, including many locally, to follow this never-say-die squad.
And how entertaining it is even for casual fans to watch an incredibly versatile and deep team that seems to have found that something extra this year, peaking at the perfect time to compile a 33-4 record, best in school history.
If you watched either of Purdue’s early games in the tourney, it simply felt like this was a team playing with a mission, above expectations, and delivering a loud and clear message. The Boilermakers rolled past Grambling State, crushed Utah State, then overcame stiffer Sweet 16 competition from Gonzaga and Tennessee.
Along the way, it’s increasingly felt as if Purdue is playing every possession with something to prove. The result has been a Boiler brew of Hoosier hysteria that even the most ardent IU hoops fan is either enjoying on the sly or missing out.
Something touching happened after Purdue edged Tennessee to earn its spot in the Final Four. Edey clipped the net without the aid of a ladder, then strolled over and delivered it to Gene Keady, 87, the winningest coach in school history. In a season of memorable moments for Boiler Nation, this was something special. “He built this,” Edey said. “It was the least I could do.”
Game recognizes game, as the saying goes.
Edey’s current coach, Matt Painter, played for Keady at Purdue, and Edey made a point of personal privilege that also recognized his coach after the team’s Tennessee win.
“There were so many coaches that looked over me,” Edey said. “Name a program, I can name a coach that looked over me.” Then Edey did, naming the Tennessee coach, against whose team Edey had just put up a career-high 40 points.
“It’s kind of been the story of my life. People have doubted me, people have looked past me,” Edey said. “Can’t do that any more.”
Those comments concern much more than the game of basketball. They concern life and overcoming challenges and adversity. Come what may, Purdue has given us that something extra this season — the thrill of watching one of the most complete and storied men’s college basketball teams that any Hoosier has ever had the joy to watch.
Like the three other teams in the Final Four, Purdue is two wins away from earning the national title. We’re game to cheer on a championship run.
Go Boilers!
